Marnie Stern on Best Coast: "Are You Joking Me?"

On her records, virtuosic guitar goddess Marnie Stern rarely employs minimalism, instead opting for intense riffs, busy compositions and her inimitable vocal screech. Since her last album, popular indie music has gone in the opposite direction, with simple compositions and sparse, lo-fi production becoming the norm. With a new Stern LP on the horizon, the songwriter was asked about modern music in an interview, and set her sights on the highly buzzed Best Coast.

Speaking with Impose Magazine, Stern brought up Best Coast in a discussion about internet hype. "What's with her?" she asked. "I heard a song and was like, 'Are you joking me?'" The topic of discussion moved onto Bethany Cosentino's overly simplistic lyrics about boys and cats. "That's unacceptable, that's unacceptable. That's not showing any part, that's unacceptable. You might as well then be an '80s hair metal band saying, 'I want pussy.'"